Biography

Serban Savu

Born 1978 in Sighisoara, Romania. Lives and works in Cluj, Romania.

Serban Savu graduated from the University of Art and Design, Cluj, in 2001.
He was the recipient of received the “Nicolae Iorga” postgraduate research grant from 2002-2004.

In 2024, he represented Romania at the 60th International Art Exhibition — La Biennale di Venezia.

Solo Exhibitions

2024
What Work Is, The Romanian National Pavilion, in the 60th Venice Biennale, Giardini della Biennale, Venice, IT

2021
Makeovers, National Museum of Contemporary Art (MNAC), Bucharest, RO
Regolith, Nicodim Gallery, Los Angeles, US

2020
ECHINOCȚIU, Kunsthalle Bega, Timișoara, RO

2019
Serban Savu – En dérive, Le Lait Centre D’art Contemporain, Albi, FR
The New Life, Galeria Dawid Radziszewski, Warsaw, PL

2018
Heroes, Saints and Other Figures, Galeria Plan B, Berlin, DE
Serban Savu, Museo Pietro Canonica a Villa Borghese, Roma, IT

2016
Serban Savu, Nicodim Gallery, Los Angeles, US

2015
Pictures at an Exhibition, Galeria Plan B, Berlin, DE
Manastur, Dawid Radziszewski Gallery, Warsaw, PL

2014
Sometimes My Eyes Are the Eyes of a Stranger, Monica de Cardenas Gallery, Milan, IT

2012
Daily Practice for the End of the World, Galeria Plan B, Berlin, DE
Overview, Mihai Nicodim Gallery, Los Angeles, US

2011
Close to Nature, David Nolan Gallery, New York, US
Under the Radar, Pitzhanger Manor House & Gallery, London, UK

2010
Essay on Limits, Galerie Hussenot, Paris, FR
Unimportant Stories, Mihai Nicodim Gallery, Los Angeles, US

2009
Recent paintings, Galeria Plan B, Berlin, DE
The Edge of the Empire, David Nolan Gallery, New York, US
Behind the Walls, Laika, Cluj, RO

2007
Harvest, Kontainer Gallery, Los Angeles, US
Girls, Plan B Gallery, Cluj, RO
Along the River, F A Projects, London, UK

2006
The New Man, Mie Lefever Gallery, Ghent, BE
Clock Card, H’art Gallery, Bucharest, RO

Selected Group Exhibitions

2024
The Twist: Failing Empires, Triumphant Provinces, National Museum of Contemporary Art, MNAC Bucharest, Bucharest, RO
Reenactment – Recostituire il passato, Galleria D’arte Accademia di Romania, Rome, IT

2023
Remembering Peace, Kyiv Biennial, Augarten Contemporary, Vienna, AT
The Twist. Five Provincial Stories from an Empire, Kunsthalle Bega, Timisoara, RO
Looking Anew and Beyond, Taubman Museum of Art, Roanoke, US
Lost in the Moment That Follows, Ways of Collecting: Ovidiu Șandor Collection, Kunsthalle Prague, Prague, CZ
Bienala Jurnal de virus | Tulpini criptice, Diptych Art Space, Bucharest, RO
Mystery 3 Elefsina Mon Amour: In Search of the Third Paradise, cur. by Katerina Gregos, Elefsina, GR
Avangarda si Contemporaneitate, Muzeul Județean de Artă, Centrul Artistic Baia Mare, Baia Mare, RO

2022
The Influencing Machine, Ujazdowski Castle Centre for Contemporary Art, Warsaw, PL
Culturi agricole. Agricultura în arta românească modernă și contemporană, Museum of Recent Art, Bucharest, RO

2021
PROIECTII IN ISTORIA VIITOARE, RECURENTE INTR-UN SPATIU ANTIFONIC, B5 Studio, Targul Mures, RO
Arta si Orasul 1974-2021, Museum of Recent Art, Bucharest, RO
Electric Crossroads, Bubble ‘n’ Squeak, Brussels, BEL
FOOTBALL. REALISM OF THE GAME,Floreasca Sports Hall, Bucharest, RO

2019
Because in our dreams we took risks, Art Encounters, Timisoara, RO
Geta Bratescu, Adrian Ghenie, Ciprian Muresan, Serban Savu, Fondazione Nicola Del Roscio, Rome, IT
Ciprian Muresan and Serban Savu, L’atelier sans fin, Atelier Brancusi – Centre Pompidou, Paris, FR
La Brique, the Brick, Caramida, La Kunsthalle, Mulhouse, FR
Ex-East, past and recent stories of the Romanian Avant-Garde, Espace Niemeyer, Paris, FR

2018
Ciprian Muresan and Serban Savu, L’entretien infini, Une saison roumaine, Centre Pompidou, Paris, FR
DOUBLE HEADS MATCHES. A selection of contemporary artworks from four Romanian private collections, New Budapest Gallery, Budapest, HU

2017
On the Sex of Angels, Nicodim Gallery, Bucharest, RO
Out of Place, The 3rd Mediterranean Biennale, Haifa, IL
Making Windows Where There Were once Walls, Gallery of Fine Arts, Ostrava, CZ
The Hierophant, Nicodim Gallery, Bucharest, RO

2016
… HOUNDED BY EXTERNAL EVENTS …, Maureen Paley, London, UK
Track Changes, curated by Plan B at Mendes Wood DM, Sao Paulo, BR
The Factory of Facts and Other (Unspoken) Stories, Salonul de Proiecte, Bucharest, Galeria Plan B, Cluj, RO
Landscapes After Ruskin: Redefining the Sublime, Hall Art Foundation, New York, US
BERLIN SHOW #4: Inventory, Galeria Plan B, Berlin, DE

2015
Tracing Shadows, PLATEAU, Samsung Museum of Art, Seoul, KR
Appearance and Essence, Art Encounters Biennial, Timisoara, RO
Pocket Revolutions, Korea Foundation, Seoul, KR
Group exhibition, Nicodim Gallery, Los Angeles, US

2014
A FEW GRAMS OF RED, YELLOW, BLUE. New Romanian Art, Centre for Contemporary Art Ujazdowski Castle, Warsaw, PL
Defaced, Boulder Museum of Contemporary Art, Boulder, Colorado, US
Through the Collector´s Eye, The Office, Cluj, RO

2013
Scènes Roumaines, Espace Culturel Louis Vuitton, Paris, FR
Nightfall: New Tendencies in Figurative Painting, Galerie Rudolfinum, Prague, CZ
HOTSPOT CLUJ – NEW ROMANIAN ART, ARKEN Museum of Modern Art, DK
Km/h, Utopies automobiles et ferroviaires 1913-2013, Tour 46, Belfort & Musée du Château des ducs de Wurtemberg, Montbéliard, FR

2012
Nightfall. New Tendencies in Figurative Painting, MODEM Centre for Modern and Contemporary Art, Debrecen, HU
Salonul de vara, Galeria Plan B, Cluj, RO
Referencing History, Green Art Gallery, Dubai, UAE
European Travellers – Art from Cluj Today, Mȕcsarnok Kunsthalle, Budapest, HU

2011
Anthem of People’s Love, Mihai Nicodim Gallery, Los Angeles, US
East Ex East, Brand New Gallery, Milan, IT
Salonul de mai, Galeria Plan B, Cluj, RO
Communism never happened, Galerie CUC Charim Unger Contemporary, Berlin, DE
Communism never happened, Charim Galerie, Vienna, AT

2010
Romanian Cultural Resolution, Figurative Painting in Romania: 1970-2000, Spinnerei, Leipzig, DE
After the Fall, Hudson Valley Center for Contemporary Art, Peekskill, New York, US
Der offene Garten, Kunsthalle Lingen, DE
Route tournante en sous-bois, UpLoad Art Project (ULAP), Trento, IT
Mircea Pinte Collection – I – ,The Art Museum Cluj, RO
BERLIN SHOW #2, Galeria Plan B, Berlin, DE
Romanian Cultural Resolution, Figurative Painting in Romania: 1970-2000, Club Electroputere, Craiova, RO

2009
Invisible Body, Conspicuous Mind, The Luckman Fine Arts Complex, Los Angeles, US
Show me a hero, Calvert22, London, UK
Expanded Painting 3, Prague Biennale 4, Prague, CZ
I´ve watered a Horseshoe as if it Were a Flower, Mihai Nicodim Gallery, Los Angeles, US

2008
Size Matters: XS – Recent Small-Scale Painting, Knoxville Museum of Art, Knoxville, US
Re-construction, Biennial of Young Artists, Bucharest, RO
Berlin Show #1, Plan B Gallery, Berlin, DE
Closer Still, Mihai Nicodim Gallery, Los Angeles, US
Days Become Nights, Galerie Hussenot, Paris, FR

2007
Eastern European Painting Now, Lora Reynolds Gallery, Austin, Texas, US
Across the Trees, David Nolan Gallery, New York, US
Expanded Painting 2, Prague Biennale 3, Prague, CZ

2006
Cluj Connection, Haunch of Venison Gallery, Zurich, CH
Please Drive Slowly Through Our World, Kontainer Gallery, Los Angeles, US

Selected public and private collections

Centre Pompidou, Paris; San Francisco MOMA; Museum of Modern Art, Warsaw; National Museum of Contemporary Art (MNAC), Bucharest; Taubman Museum of Art, Roanoke, Virginia; FRAC Auvergne, Clermont-Ferrand; Hort Family Collection, New York; Zabludowicz Collection, London, Sarvisalo, New York; Dean Valentine and Amy Adelson Collection, Los Angeles.

Bibliography

Exhibition Catalogues, Artist Books, Monographs

• 2019
  Pop, Mihai; State, George. Drifting, Cluj: IDEA Design and Print, 2019

  2015
  Mullins, Charlotte. Picturing People, The New State of the Art. London: Thames & Hudson, 2015, p. 9-51; p. 76-77.

  2014
  Valli, Marc; Dessanay, Margherita. Abrush with the real: figurative painting today. London: King, 2014, p. 210-218.
  Gorzadek, Ewa. A FEW GRAMS OF RED, YELLOW, BLUE New art from Romania. Warszawa: Centre for Contemporary Art Ujazdowski Castle, 2014, p. 52-53. [catalogue]

  2013
  Demir, Duygu; Jung, Hyun; Byrd I., Antawan. Art cities of the future 21st Century Avant-Gardes. London: Phaidon Press Limited, 2013; New York: Phaidon Press Inc., 2014, p. 82-85.
  Garner, Glen; Fogh, Annemette. Hotspot Cluj-New Romanian Art. Arken, Copenhagen: Museum of Modern Art, 2013. [catalogue]

  2012
  Diquinzio, Apsara. SIX LINES OF FLIGHT: SHIFTING GEOGRAPHIES IN CONTEMPORARY ART. San Francisco: The San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, 2012, p. 106. [catalogue]

  2011
  Schwabsky, Barry. Vitamin P2: New Perspectives In Painting. London: Phaidon, 2011, p. 264-265.
  East by South West. Vienna: Remaprint, 2011, p. 48-50.
  Serbav Savu, Hatje Cantz, 2011 [monography]

  2010
  Adler, Phoebe; McCorquodale, Duncan. Contemporary art in Eastern Europe. London: Black Dog, 2010.
  Mircan, Mihnea; Neal, Jane; Radu, Magda. Edited by Mihai Pop, Colectia Mircea Pinte. Cluj: Galeria Plan B and Museum of Art Cluj Napoca, 2010. [catalogue]

  2009
  Neal, Jane. Show me a hero: Zsolt Bodoni, Adrian Ghenie, Vitaly Pushnitsky, Serban Savu, Peter Sudar, Alexander Tinei. London: Calvert, 2009.

Articles and reviews

• 2024
  But, Georgiana,”Serban Savu (a conversation)”, Conceptual Fine Arts, September 2024
  Marincu, Diana. ““Everything is Possible on the Periphery,”, Revista Arta, 2024
  Mutler, Alison.”Romania brings modern mosaics to the Venice Biennale,” Financial Times, April 2024
  Behrens, Edward. “Must-see pavilions at the Venice Biennale 2024”, Apollo Magazine, 2024
  Earle, Nico Kos. “60th Venice Biennale Twelve Essential Highlights”, Artlyst, 2024
  “Serban Savu on Representing Romania at the 60th Venice Biennale”, Art Review, March 2024
  Marinescu, Patricia. “Șerban Savu on Representing Romania at the 60th Venice Biennale”, Curatorial, March 2024

  2017
  Echterhoff, Cordula. ”Metropolis – Serban Savu,” arte.tv, October, 2017.
  Casiuc, Carmen. ”Concerns of radical eccentricity,” Revista Arta.ro, March, 2017.
  Gat, Orit. ”Hounded by External Events…,“ frieze.com, January, 2017.

  2016
  Dambrot, Shana Nys. ”Sociopolitical History and Art History as Feedback Loops,“ Whitehotmagazine.com, May, 2016.
  Buck, Louisa. ”Commercial success: the trio of independent galleries showcasing thought-provoking shows,” Telegraph.co.uk, December, 2016.

  2015
  Muraben, Bilie. ”Serban Savu’s wry realist renderings depict Romanian’s melancholic splendour,“ itsnicethat.com, January, 2015.

  2014
  Colvin, Rob. ”Artists Pick Artists: Serban Savu,“ Hyperallergic, May, 2014.
  Steffen, Patrick. ”My Highlights from Art Los Angeles Contemporary,“ Artsy.net, January, 2014.

  2013
  Turner, Zeke. ”Art Matters | A Medieval Romanian With Major Art Talent,“ New York Times, T Magazine, November, 2013.

  2012
  ”Inside the mind of Serban Savu,“ Phaidon.com, January, 2012.
  ”Referencing History,“ Artbahrain.org, June, 2012.

  2011
  Wise, Lloyd. ”Șerban Savu. David Nolan Gallery,” Artforum International, December, 2011, p. 256.
  Cohen, David. ”Communism Never Happend: Serban Savu and the Cluj Connection,“ artcritical.com, October, 2011.
  Grant, Daniel. ”Romanians of the Day – Romanian artist are in the spotlight all over the world,” artnews.com, May, 2011.
  ”Artist to Wach,“ The Art Economist, February, 2011.

  2010
  „Nu vine niciun tren,” IDEA artă + societate / IDEA arts + society 35. Cluj, IDEA Design & Print Cluj and IDEA Fundation, 2010, p. 34-51.
  „Notă conținând activitățile desfășurate și membrii Fabricii de Pensule,” IDEA artă + societate / IDEA arts + society 36-37. Cluj, IDEA Design & Print Cluj and IDEA Fundation, 2010, p. 68.

  2009
  Obourn, Nick. ”The Edge of the Empire,” Art In America, June/July, 2009.
  Popescu, Adina. ”Serban Savu. David Nolan Gallery,” Artforum.com, March, 2009.
  Cotter, Holland. ”The Edge of the Empire,” The New York Times.com, March, 2009.
  Lindquist, Greg. ”The Edge of the Empire,” Artcritical.com, March, 2009.

  2008
  Neal, Jane. ”Serban Savu,” flashartonline.com, March – April, 2008.

  2007
  Cotter, Holland. ”Acroos the Trees: Romanian Art Now,” The New York Times, April, 2007.

Press

• But, Georgiana,"Serban Savu (a conversation)", Conceptual Fine Arts, September 2024

• Marincu, Diana. "“Everything is Possible on the Periphery,", Revista Arta, 2024

• Mutler, Alison."Romania brings modern mosaics to the Venice Biennale," Financial Times, April 2024

• Behrens, Edward. "Must-see pavilions at the Venice Biennale 2024", Apollo Magazine, 2024

• Earle, Nico Kos. "60th Venice Biennale Twelve Essential Highlights", Artlyst, 2024

• "Serban Savu on Representing Romania at the 60th Venice Biennale", Art Review, March 2024

• Marinescu, Patricia. "Șerban Savu on Representing Romania at the 60th Venice Biennale", Curatorial, March 2024

• Gat, Orit. ” ...Hounded by External Events...,” frieze, 2017

• Wise, Lloyd. ”Serban Savu,” Artforum, 2011

• Cotter, Holland. ”Serban Savu 'The Edge of the Empire',” The New York Times, 2009

• Neal, Jane. ”The New Roman(ian) Order,” Modern Painter, 2009

• Popescu, Adina. ”Critics' Picks: Serban Savu,” Artforum 2009

• Voinea, Raluca. ”Șerban Savu: Nu vine niciun tren / No Train Coming,” IDEA arts + society magazine, No. 35, 2010

• Hohmann, Silke. ”Hello Bucharest,” monopol, 2007